Sleuth Rangers VS Phantom Rangers!
by LeafyDream
Summary: In honor of National Power Rangers Day, I present to you a story that was never truly started. Souji, Naoto, and Yosuke are the Sleuth Rangers, a team of Rangers fighting for the truth, and saving lives. They're the enemies of the Phantom Rangers, the Rangers who fight for freedom, and punishing evil. Complete with details of the story I would have made.


**Long ago, when humanity was still young, demonic creatures bled from tears in reality. These creatures terrorized the land, imitating the shape and form of whatever they saw, twisting them into cruel reflections or 'Shadows' of whatever they mimicked.**

 **These beasts would have tore the land apart, were it not for the God of Creation, Izanagi-No-Okami. He alone held back the tide of darkness, and with a strike of his mighty blade, he cut the beasts down, forcing them to flee through the cracks they came from.**

 **His work done, Izanagi retreated back to the Heavens, but legend has it that the mighty god, knowingly or not, left his work half done. The Shadows left anchors of their influence, Treasures that would tempt those with distorted desires, and unleash the Shadow within.**

 **Catch Those Thieves, Sleuth Rangers!**

Souji Seta wiped sweat from his brow, panting as Daisuke sat beside him. The two sat on the bleachers, watching their teammates running back and forth as the bright sun pelted them with heat. The brunette noticed how out of breath his friend was, and he arched a brow.

"You okay, man? You seem tired."

"Sorry. Just sore from last night." Souji smiled at his friend, brushing off his concern. "I was up all night working out."

"Got to learn to pace yourself, man. If you overwork yourself, you're gonna end up doing more bad than good."

"Yeah, you're right." Souji nodded at his friend, before wiping his arm against his forehead. "I'm going to hit the showers then head home. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Daisuke nodded his head, lifting an arm to wave his friend goodbye. "Totally, man. Take care, alright?" Souji nodded his head as he picked up his backwave, waving goodbye to the brunette.

Souji walked back to the locker rooms, his smile fading into a subtle grimace as he dragged his feet. His whole body ached from the fight last night. He and his team did their best to defeat the Shadow, but once again it had escaped.

 _We've got to stop that thing before someone gets hurt,_ he thought to himself. His bag was heavy with textbooks and papers, but there were two things in his backpack that most students at Yasogami wouldn't have.

A white, metallic device that almost resembled a weapon from science fiction. Most would assume the item was merely an unassuming toy, much like the red race car beside it.

Of course, as Souji Seta had learned over the last few weeks, those who assumed what they saw was the truth were often disappointed.

000

Naoto Shirogane had left the school's grounds as soon as she could, racing to Tokyo's police department to make use of the facility's gun range. She held the revolver in her small hands, breathing in and out, before pulling the trigger.

Headshot.

Headshot.

Headshot.

Heart.

Each shot was right on target, but still the navy-haired detective scowled. Her aim with the pistol was excellent, but last night her shots were absolutely atrocious. A disgrace to her family's reputation.

She sighed, putting her firearm down as she took long, deep breaths. She had always been hard on herself. She saw it as her responsibility. Without her parents to raise her, and her grandfather's lenient nature, she had to be her toughest critic.

Every movement of her finger, every glance of the eye, everything about her had to be perfect. She had to not only carry the Shirogane family name, she had to lift it higher than ever before.

Such was her burden, but it was one she would bear. Naoto Shirogane would rise to any challenge, no matter the risk.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and she decided that now was an apt time to take her leave. Naoto emptied her gun, holstered it, and left the facility. As she walked, she reached for her phone and checked the latest message.

It came from her senpai, Souji Seta, an intelligent and respectable young man. He was a good man and an excellent friend. The kind of person Naoto was happy to work alongside.

' _Hey, Naoto! Want to come with Yosuke and I to Big Bang Burger? My treat.'_ Naoto read, practically seeing the young man's smile.

Souji Seta was a peculiar, but ultimately talented and courageous individual. Yosuke-senpai was… nice enough, Naoto supposed. Her first instinct was to politely decline, but her thumb hesitated, hovering over the touchscreen.

 _Perhaps spending lunch with them would be nice? Even if it is at an establishment like Big Bang Burger…_ Naoto didn't particularly like the menu there. All of the greasy food would throw off her planned nutritional diet, but she supposed she could just order a drink or one of the establishment's salads.

Naoto took a moment to ponder how she should respond, before she sent her reply. As she walked to Big Bang Burger, she could feel an item in her coat's pocket poke at her stomach. It was a white object, that resembled a cartoonish depiction of a gun, and beside it was a small, pink race car.

000

Yosuke Hanamura never got tired of the city. He leaned back in his seat, staring up at the tall buildings that surrounded the little fast food place. He spent his whole life growing up in the city, and he wouldn't have had it any other way.

He finally looked away from the gleaming towers above him and picked upa salt-covered fry. He enjoyed the delicious delicacy as he looked at his best friend, Souji Seta. The silver-haired boy was looking through his phone, probably waiting for a reply from their other friends.

"Naoto say anything yet?"

"Yep. She just replied."

"What'd she say?" he asked, downing another fry.

"Affirmative. All caps," the silverette answered.

"She is so weird," commented Yosuke.

"I wouldn't say weird. More like quirky," Souji replied nonchalantly.

"Spoken like a fellow weirdo." The two boys smiled at one another, ribbing each other like two friends would.

"Maybe I am." Souji shrugged his shoulder lazily, before standing up from his seat. "I'm going to get some food for myself. You want anything while I'm up?"

"Number four. Coke," he replied, and Souji nodded his head before walking away.

Yosuke ate another fry as he thought quietly to himself. His mind quickly began to wander, and he reached for his backpack on the floor, picking it up and unzipping it. He rummaged through the bag until he found what he was looking for. A green racecar laying next to a white, toy gun.

He reached into the bag, and held the objects in his hands. He examined the two devices with careful eyes. "Hm." Yosuke Hanamura was just a normal teenager just a few months ago. Now he was out, saving the world and saving lives. He should have thought life couldn't get any better, yet he couldn't help but feel there was something lacking.

A hole in his chest that he wasn't sure how to fill.

"You should be careful holding that out in the open," a voice warned.

Yosuke blinked, dropping the two devices back into his bag as he looked up at Naoto's stoic face. "Oh! Hey, Naoto. What's up?"

"Nothing of importance. I hope I'm not intruding by joining you and Souji-senpai for lunch."

"It's cool, don't worry about it," he replied with a smile. "You been doing alright?" The girl nodded her head as she sat down across from Yosuke. After that, a silence fell on the table, with Naoto staring at the table and Yosuke looking away.

The two were friendly around one another, but Yosuke wasn't an idiot. Naoto and he really weren't that close to one another. Souji was the glue that connected to the two, meaning that without him, the two didn't really have a lot to talk about.

"You order yet?"

"I did. Souji-senpai suggested I order something else other than a salad, so I'm trying one of the restaurant's mushroom deluxes," she explained, matter of factly. Naoto's hand gently tapped on the table as she muttered, "Rise-chan was also there. Senpai is helping her decide what to get."

"Wait, Risette's here?" Yosuke couldn't hide the grin on his face. "Awesome! Souji didn't tell me he invited her!" The brunette lifted up his head, looking around the restaurant for the famed idol. He was so focused on trying to see her, that he didn't even notice the detective's muttering.

"Yes, he didn't mention it to me, either..."

Yosuke waved his arm at Souji and Rise, grinning as they walked over with everyone's food. "Risette! Hey! What's up?" he beamed.

"Hi, Yosuke-senpai! Hey, Naoto!" the girl grinned. Naoto waved at the girl, scooting closer to the wall to give her room to sit. The four sat down with the older boys on one side, and the younger girls on the other, before they began to talk.

"Glad you could join us, Detective Prince," Souji teased.

"Please do not refer to me by that title, Senpai," the girl sighed. "I get enough of it from the media. It's beginning to get…"

"Annoying?" Naoto nodded her head, staring at her burger as Rise drank from her milkshake. The idol nodded her head with a smile. "I get that. I'm super happy I don't have to be Risette when I'm around you guys."

"And we're happy to have both of you on the team." Souji smiled at the two girls as Yosuke bit into his burger, nodding.

"Yeah! It's awesome! Like we're hanging out with a pair of celebrities." Naoto blushed from the remark, while Rise just giggled. "Sorry. I know I've said it before, but it's just really cool that I get to hang out with 'the' Risette!"

"Try not to get too starstruck, Yosuke," Souji chuckled. "We were brought together for a reason, remember?"

Yosuke blinked, before swallowing his food and grinning. "Right. We're superheroes." He whispered the words, just loud enough for those at the table to hear. Rise beamed at the statement, while Naoto finally took a bit of her burger.

The sleuth put the burger back down, slowly chewing the strange delicacy. She then swallowed and looked up at Yosuke. "Well, I suppose that is one way to look at it."

"Color coordinated outfits, masks, transformation devices," Souji listed off. "Sure seems like superheroes to me." His smile turned sly around Naoto, and he leaned forward slightly. "Still upset about the color?"

"Pink wouldn't have been my first choice," the detective replied, glaring at her burger.

"Heh. I think it looks good on you," he teased.

Yosuke arched his brow as Naoto blushed, suddenly chomping into her burger as if to ignore the silverette. Yosuke shrugged his shoulders, before looking at Rise. The young woman was holding her head, and rubbing her forehead. "Hey, you okay, Rise?"

The others looked at Rise, and it didn't take long for each of them to come to the same conclusion. They knew the young idol had a gift, different from theirs, but no less important. It was arguably the most important power on their side.

"Ow, I… Guys, I think a Shadow Treasure just activated…"

"Where?" Souji asked, his voice deepening into a low growl. Rise held up a hand and pointed down the road. "Rise, get somewhere quiet where you can focus. Naoto, Yosuke, come on."

"Right."

"You got it." Yosuke glanced at Rise as he and Souji stood up. "See ya, Rise-chan."

"See ya. Good luck, guys!"

Souji nodded his head as he, Yosuke, and Naoto ran out of the restaurant, their food left on the table. Yosuke was grinning as he reached into his bag and pulled out the toy and race car. He and his two friends ran into an alley, and after a quick scan of the area, looked at one another.

"Ready?" their leader, Souji, asked, holding up his own blaster and racecar.

"Ready!" Yosuke and Naoto answered, lifting up their own.

Each of the young teens entered their car under the barrel of the gun, fixing it into a slot. They then held the blasters to the sky and fired, creating three golden police badges over each of them. The golden symbols then fell back down on them, turning into each of their respective colors as armor and clothing formed over their bodies.

The suits were mostly white, but with stripes and streaks of their respective color on them. Colored shoulder pads formed on their upper bodies as helmets materialized around their heads. Black visors and silver faceplates covered each of them as they looked over their transformed body.

"I hate this color," sighed Naoto, glaring at her white and pink outfit.

"Come on. Let's move," Souji ordered, leaping into the air and landing on the roof of the restaurant. Naoto quickly followed as Yosuke grinned. The brunette was beaming under his mask.

"Alright! Sleuth Rangers, go!"

0000

As the three left in the direction Rise pointed them in, the idol was running out of the restaurant and down the street. She ran as quickly as she could to an open, but secluded area. Thankfully she knew a place she could hide away in that wasn't too far.

The Amagi Inn was a popular tourist attraction and rest stop for many in Tokyo, but it also acted as an unofficial base for the Sleuth Rangers. After the group had saved the owner's daughter, Rise and the others were given a reserved room for whenever they needed.

She ran into the inn, panting. Rise didn't spare much of a glance to the raven-haired receptionist, barely greeting the older girl as she ran for the reserved room. She quickly opened the door and locked it behind her, before dropping her school bag to the ground. She reached inside and pulled out a large, circular visor.

Rise placed it onto her face, activating it with her voice. "Himiko, on!" The visor lit up, and Rise could see through the black visors of her friends. "Guys, you read me?"

"We read you, Rise," Souji's voice replied.

"Anything to report?" Naoto's voiced questioned.

Rise scanned the entire city through her visor, looking through a map of the metropolis with a quick glance. "I've got a reading on the Shadow Treasure. It's already connected with someone! They're attacking Yasogami High!"

"Our school?! Why?" Yosuke wondered.

"I don't know, but we better hurry before the competition does. Rise, any sign of the Phantoms?"

"Not yet, Senpai."

"Then we better hurry… Come on, team!"

Rise could see through the three's visor, but she wished she could have been there to help. She wasn't able to join her Senpai's side on the battlefield, but she promised each of her friends that she'd help as best she could.

0000000000000

Souji, Naoto, and Yosuke landed on the roof of their school as they watched a monster destroy the soccer field.

The monster was a Shadow, of who or what, they weren't sure yet. What they could clearly see was that the monster was much bigger than them, standing at least seven feet tall and every inch of his violet body bursting with muscle, to the point where the skin seemed to come apart like thread against the sinewy bulk. The beast's yellow eyes glared at everything around it as it roared, picking up a chunk of earth and tossing it like it was a coin, knocking over a large tree. Students and faculty alike screamed in terror at the behemoth.

"Himiko." Souji made sure to use Rise's codename now that they were close to civilians. "Get a scan of him and tell us if you can tell who that is, and where the Shadow Treasure is."

"Right!"

"Green, on civilian duty. Get the people to safety."

"You got it, partner!"

"Pink, with me! Le's distract that thing!"

"Yes, Senpai!"

The group quickly split apart, and Yu and Naoto jumped onto the ground and lifted up their blasters, aiming them at the wild goliath. Yu analyzed the creature's distorted face. It was like someone had pulled on a normal person's head, growing the chin and teeth, and shrinking the eyes. His own eyes strained behind his visor as he wondered who this creature once was.

"Calm down," Souji ordered. "We don't want to hurt you!"

"You!" the beast snarled, glaring at the two of them. "This is all your fault! Why?! What did I do wrong?!" Souji followed his eyes, and realized the Shadow was glaring at Naoto. "I loved you!"

"Uh… Pink? Do you know him?"

"Most likely not..." But Naoto wasn't too sure. She stared at the distorted face, trying to see any resemblance it might have had with someone she knew.

"But you left me! Why?!" The beast roared again, before charging, moving like a gorilla before he leapt into the air.

"Look out!" Naoto tackled Souji, knocking the two away as the creature slammed into the earth, shaking it. The two quickly stood, firing at him with their blasters, but the pink and red energy bolts only seemed to further anger the creature.

"I hate you!" he roared, slamming his hands into the ground, making the two stumble in place.

"He's strong," commented the red-costumed man.

"Indeed. We should keep our distance," suggested the detective.

"Problem is he's also incredibly fast. I can try to hold him in place while you blast him." The two looked at one another, and Souji could practically feel Naoto's glare.

"A reckless plan as ever…"

"Heh." The Shadow was running at them, and Souji was already making his own move. He holstered his blaster and ran forward, a red glow surrounding his hand. A long, crimson sword formed and he held it in his right hand as he moved closer, dodging the Shadow's wild swing.

"Senpai!" Naoto sighed in her helmet, quickly holding out her free hand. Another blaster, this one bright pink in color, formed in her hand, and she began to fire away at the Shadow, careful not to injure her own leader. "Himiko, do you read me?"

"Right here, Pink!"

"Do you know where this creature's Heart is yet?"

"Almost… Okay, I got it. Patching it in now." Naoto's visor shifted color for a moment, gaining a subtle pink tint as a box was drawn around the Shadow's left shoulder. "There it is. You're going to do some digging though if you're going to reach it…"

"Lovely," she sighed. "Patch me into Red-Senpai?" Naoto mentally cursed herself. Even under a mask, she couldn't help but refer to Souji as her senpai.

"You two are connected."

"Pink, what's up?" Souji's voice asked through their comlink.

"Himiko's found the Shadow's safe. Can you distract it while I try to access it?"

"You got it."

"Guys, there's one more thing you need to know." Rise's voice trembled slightly, causing both to fear what she was about to say. "Souji, that's Daisuke under there. He's been corrupted by the Shadow Treasure..."

 _Daisuke Nagase. Second-year student._ Naoto could recite as many facts as she knew about the individual, it didn't mean anything in the end. No, what mattered was that Souji knew the young man. Daisuke was one of his friends, and to see his friend corrupted into such a creature…

"I gave you everything! I did everything for you! I tried my best, but nothing was ever good enough!" Shadow Daisuke screamed, lunging at Souji.

If news of his friend's condition affected the Red Ranger, he didn't let it show.

His scarlet sword stabbed through one of Shadow Daisuke's hands, while the other hand grappled with the creature's uninjured arm.

"Pink! Hurry!"

"R-right!" Naoto ran forward as quickly as she could, leaping onto Shadow Daisuke's back as she aimed both of her guns at his shoulders. She pulled the trigger, firing energy bolts at point blank range. The shots tore apart his skin like it was stone, and he bled black blood as Naoto finally saw her target.

The metal face of a safe stared at her, complete with a handle to open it. All Naoto had to do was destroy the safe, and Daisuke would return to his human state…

"Red! Pink! Incoming!"

An energy bolt suddenly hit Naoto's shoulder, knocking her off of Daisuke as several more shots hit Souji's legs. He fell to his knees, before he was easily smacked away by Shadow Daisuke. The behemoth turned his glare to his would-be saviors, snarling.

The two Sleuth Rangers forced their bodies up, staring at the three figures that stood just a few yards from the Shadow. One man dressed in red and black armor, with two women in similar outfits by his side, their own uniforms replacing the red with blue or yellow. Each of them held a white blaster in their hands.

Their uniforms were colored similarly to the Sleuth Rangers, but they were black while their outfits were white. Each members of the group wore a helmet, with a visor colored to match their uniforms. Long white capes hung from their bodies as they stared Naoto and Souji down.

"Thanks for softening him up for us," the man chuckled. "We'll take it from here. Phantom Rangers, go!" He snapped his fingers in the air, and his two associates ran towards Shadow Daisuke.

"No! Green, get back here, now! The Phantom Rangers are attacking Daisuke!" Souji demanded, before running forward to intercept the two. Naoto quickly followed, firing away with her own weapons.

"Noir, Queen, take care of the Sleuths. I'll steal the Shadow's heart," the Red Phantom explained.

"Senpai, go and intercept their leader, I'll take care of these two!" Souji clearly heard Naoto, yet he stared at her through his visor in disbelief.

"I'm not leaving you to take on two all by yourself!"

"Green will be with me momentarily. I will be fine, now go!" Naoto glanced at the two Phantom Rangers, quickly firing at them with her blasters. The wave of energy blasts kept the two back as Souji finally accepted Naoto's terms. He ran to Shadow Daisuke as the Detective Prince glared at her two enemies.

She had tangled with both of the women enough times to recognize them. Queen was the Blue Phantom, and her fighting style was brutally simple. She preferred to fight with her hands and feet, with enough speed to get in close if Naoto didn't watch her.

Noir was the Yellow Phantom, and her fighting style could best be described as 'violent.' Naoto watched as she created a large, yellow axe in her hand, slowly moving it through the air like some sort of barbarian archetype. She was destructive, fighting with a passionate, but unrefined style.

"Put your weapons down, and come peaceful," Naoto ordered, trying to buy herself time.

"It's two against one! You're the one who should be giving up, villain!" Noir replied. Just hearing that word come from her enemy made Naoto's teeth grind against one another.

These two were criminals, but more than that there was a personal grudge against them. Naoto felt her fingers stroke the triggers of her guns, before she roared at them, her calm nature giving way to anger.

"You two are the only villains I see." Naoto began to open fire, slowly walking backwards as the two Phantoms began to dodge or deflect her shots.

0000

The Red Phantom Ranger, or Joker, as Souji had heard him being called before, fired at Shadow Daisuke with his own blaster. It resembled Souji's, save for the red jet on the barrel of the gun. Joker's shots were about as effective as Souji's, meaning they weren't effective at all.

"Get away from him!" Souji commanded, swinging his sword and nearly cutting Joker's hand.

"I see things haven't changed much for you, have they, Sleuth?" Joker chuckled, stepping back as the Shadow stood beside them. The beast roared, but Joker dodged the creature's strikes with ease. "Still the protecting rapists and murderers?"

"Still pretending you're a hero by hiding behind your own delusions of grandeur?"

The two red-costumed men glared at one another, before the Shadow regained their attention. It swung at Joker again, only to miss. The Phantom Ranger fired several times at him, enraging him further. It swung again, missing, only for Souji's fist to connect with Joker's helmet, knocking him to the ground.

"You're making a mistake!" Souji shouted, aiming his blaster at the fallen Phantom.

"Me? I'm not the one guarding a criminal!"

"Says the criminal!"

"At least I know who I am, and what I believe in." Shadow Daisuke's fist connected with Souji, sending him crashing into a nearby tree. "It seems the Shadow doesn't care much for your attempts to save it!"

Souji forced his body up, ignoring the stabbing back in his back as he glared at the Phantom. Joker was ducking under the large, bulky arms, before leaping onto the creature's back. With expert skill and grace, Joker yanked the safe open as Souji began to fire.

"No!"

The shots made their mark, stunning the crook and giving Shadow Daisuke the chance to grab him. The monster then piledrived Joker into the ground, before roaring. He raised his fists into the air to crush the Red Phantom, only to be blinded by Souji shooting right at his eyes. The Red Sleuth ran forward, leaping to try and reach the open safe in Daisuke's shoulder, only to be caught and slammed into the ground by Joker.

"That… hurt," the thief growled.

"Send me your doctor's bill," replied Souji as he quickly got back up. He holstered his gun and brandished his sword. Joker responded by putting his own blaster away and materializing a red dagger in his hand.

What followed was a three way battle. Souji and Joker both tried to cut and stab at one another, while dodging Shadow Daisuke's wide swings. The sounds of their blades clashing with each other filled the air. Their blades caught against one another, and the two glared at each other through their visors, before the Shadow forced them apart. Daisuke's fist narrowly missed Souji's head as he ducked under a swing, and Joker flipped over it, landing in front of the crimson-colored sleuth.

"Behold, your savior!" Joker mocked, grabbing Souji's collar and lifting him as another punch flew towards them.

The Red Phantom held Souji right in front of the incoming blow. The Shadow hit the sleuth, and Souji's body hit the ground like a brick. Try as he might, Souji couldn't even lift himself up after the hit. His vision was blurry as he watched Joker leap onto Daisuke and reach into the safe…

"N-no…!"

Souji's legs gave way, and he fell back down to the ground as Joker held a white light in his hand, freshly plucked from Daisuke's heart. The behemoth let out a groan, the light suddenly vanishing from his eyes as he began to fall to the ground. His skin melted away in a black smoke rising from his body.

"Noir, Queen, we're done here. I've stolen the Shadow's distorted desires." Joker walked towards Souji, his every step a reminder of Souji's failure. "I know you mean well, Red, but what I'm doing is what needs to be done."

"You can't… take the law… into your own hands! People aren't your toys!" he groaned, trying to push himself back up. Joker's foot slammed into his back, bringing him back down.

"Is that what you think this is about? All you would have done is turn him back to how he was before." Joker held his hand in front of Souji's masked face, letting him see the white orb that danced in the thief's palm. "This? This is change. This is me making a difference. This is me punishing a broken system, where people like him-" Joker pointed to Daisuke's melting body. "-can't take advantage of the weak. No more oppression. No more tyrants. No more evil."

"He's a person…!"

"He's a criminal, and I'll make sure everyone like him gets the same." Joker lifted his foot off of Souji's back. His voice was low, a clear edge to it. "Better be careful. Next time, I might just take do the same to you." And then he brought his foot down on Souji, and all the young man saw was darkness…

000

Naoto walked through the halls of the school. It was time for lunch, but the young woman had no desire to eat. She looked for Souji Seta, knowing the young man was wallowing in his own self-loathing. Yosuke-senpai had no idea where he was, nor did Rise, but Naoto knew the one place Souji went to when he wanted to be alone.

Out of respect, Naoto did not inform the others. She walked alone to the rooftop, pushing open the door to find the silverette. He sat alone on the stone roof, staring into the sky.

"Senpai?" He didn't respond. "Souji…?"

"Oh. Hi, Naoto," he greeted, not moving. "Can I help you?"

 _Typical. Always putting others in front of himself…_ "I know you were Daisuke-senpai's friend," Naoto muttered, slowly walking forward. She felt out of place. She was an intelligent, and clever woman, but the maze of social interaction and comfort was… incomprehensible for her.

But for Souji, she had to try.

"Feels like I was the only one." Souji didn't move from his seat as Naoto sat by his side. "You haven't heard some of the things his classmates have been saying to him, have you?" Naoto shook her head. "They weren't surprised he turned into a monster."

Daisuke was outed as someone with distorted desire by the Phantom Rangers. If the Sleuth Rangers had been quick enough, if Naoto could have helped her Senpai, then Daisuke would have been reverted back to normal, desires and all. They would have carried him away as he returned to his human state, protected him from the humiliation and disgrace the Phantom Rangers gifted him.

The whole school knew Daisuke only as a villain. If the Phantom Rangers attacked him, he must have been evil, and if he was evil, the general public showed no mercy.

"I heard a girl say Daisuke tried to force himself on her." Souji's hand tightened into a fist. "I heard a boy talk about how Daisuke would pick on kids smaller than him. I heard his own teammates, his friends, talk about how happy they were the Phantom Rangers changed his heart."

Naoto lifted a hand and laid it on Souji's, gently squeezing the trembling fingers. "I heard teachers talk about how happy they were to get rid of him. How any child raised by a single parent wouldn't come out right. How he belongs in jail…"

"Senpai…"

"I've known the guy for years. He's always been a good friend, a good person!" Naoto's eyes widened. She had never seen the silverette so infuriated. "Suddenly the Phantom Rangers think they know him? Suddenly everyone acts like he was some kind of monster! He wasn't a bad guy, Naoto." Her hand gently tightened around his wrist as he let out a long, heavy sigh. "We can't let the Phantom Rangers get away with this. They're taking the laws into their own hands, ruining people's lives…"

"I know." She nodded her head.

She and Souji were affected by the Phantom Rangers more than anyone else on their team. The Phantoms' actions resulted in the Shirogane name being dragged through the mud and dirt, and Souji… Souji had lost his uncle because of them...

"I won't let them get away with this."

"I know, Senpai…"

They would see the villains brought to justice, no matter what it took.

0000

Yosuke stood outside of Daisuke's home the next day. The young man didn't bother coming to school, and Yosuke knew why. The fact that he had been corrupted and turned into that monster would have been reason enough for the school to treat him like an outcast, but it wasn't just that.

He had seen it before. Whenever the Phantom Rangers stole from a person's heart, they took their desires with them. In some cases, this meant a terrible criminal would admit to his crimes and be tried accordingly. In other cases, it shattered the mind of a perfectly normal, flawed person…

A person guilty of wanting a girlfriend would think of themselves as a rapist. A nurse who lost a patient would see herself as a killer, and begged to be treated as such. A young, teenage boy who had a fight with his girlfriend would be seen himself as scum...

The door opened and Daisuke's mother greeted the boy with red, dry eyes. She must have been crying for hours as she let Yosuke in. The young man didn't bother asking her how she was, knowing that neither would have liked her answer. He spared a sympathetic, pitying glance, before walking away with his head hung low.

He entered Daisuke's room, where the young man sat on his bed. A plate of food sat on his nightstand, untouched and cold.

"Daisuke?" He didn't reply, his back facing Yosuke as he stared at the wall. "Hey, man, I… I brought today's assignment, and my notes. I-"

"It's my fault."

"Daisuke...?"

"I loved her, but I drove her away," he uttered, his voice quivering as his body trembled. Yosuke quickly dropped his school bag to the ground, walking to the young man's side. "It's all my fault… and I just made things worse."

"Daisuke, come on, it's okay. Whatever you did-"

"I-I thought of horrible things I was so mad at them." Daisuke let out a choking gasp. Yosuke could see tears flowing from his eyes as he stared at the ceiling. "I thought, I thought about how annoying they were. How I didn't want them fawning over me, because they just reminded me of her. Stupid. Stupid. I was so selfish."

"Daisuke, it's going to be alright. Look, man, you're blowing this out of proportions. Whatever you think you did, you-" Yosuke's hand fell on his friend's wrist, only to recoil as something warm and wet stained his fingertips. He pulled his hand back and looked down, eyes widening as he saw the blood drip from Daisuke's wrists.

"I deserve this…" The other hand dropped the scissors as Yosuke pulled out his phone, screaming out for Daisuke's family.

 **END**

I love Power Rangers. Seriously, I love it so, so, so much. I want to crossover Power Rangers with damn near all of my favorite fandoms. Hell, cross tokusatsu with all my favorite franchises. Power Rangers in RWBY, Ultraman in My Hero Academia, Kamen Rider in Persona, more, more, more!

Ahem. In honor of National Power Rangers Day, it's a real holiday, I wanted to post this old story I wrote almost a year ago. It's obviously just a sample chapter, and was never meant to be the first chapter of the story. Just a… test of the concept.

The story itself would have been heavily inspired by Lupinrangers vs Patrangers. Persona 4's Yosuke, Naoto, and Souji would have been the Patrangers, or Sleuth Rangers, while the Lupinrangers, or Phantom Rangers, were made up of Makoto, Haru, and Ren. Rise would have helped the Sleuth Rangers as a Mission Control, and Futaba would have done the same for the Phantom Rangers.

The main conflict would have been about two different view points and two different sets of heroes at war with each other, with the evil Shadows being both of their enemies. Sleuths wanted to save everyone by turning the person back to normal, Phantom Rangers wanted to punish the guilty after turning them back to normal.

Shadow Treasures are attracted to dark thoughts, or distorted desires. How the two groups treat the Shadow Monsters this makes is the conflict.

Kamoshida wanted to rape a poor, innocent girl, he gets turned into a monster. The Sleuths turn him back to normal, but they don't punish him without sufficient evidence. So he gets to go back to doing what he was doing.

On the other hand, Souji's uncle was guilty of thinking about blaming his child for his wife's death. Dojima would never have abandoned Nanako, but everyone has bad thoughts. He was still corrupted, and afterwards, the Phantom Rangers 'fixed him,' but labelled him a monster equivalent to Kamoshida. Dojima lost his job, and became horribly depressed. He eventually drove his car into a tree, suicidal and depressed without his desires, and left Nanako without a dad.

Dojima didn't actually do anything illegal, but he had distorted desires still, and that's the point.

Sleuths protect criminals, meaning to or not, and protect a broken system that lets people like Shido, Kamoshida, and Kaneshiro run wild. Phantoms treat all criminals with the same brutal efficiency, driving normal people into committing themselves, or killing themselves, like Daisuke.

Both sides are wrong, but I see the conflict as being between Optimism VS Cynicism. Hoping that these criminals will be caught even if the system is broken, versus punishing people for even considering crimes, because chances are they will commit those crimes.

Granted, this story is heavily swayed to make the Phantoms look back, but that's because there's no chapter focusing on their point of view. I wanted to make one, but no time, sooo… Yeah.

Akechi and Adachi would probably be each team's Sixth Rangers. The two are actually in cahoots with the real Big Bad, and would make sure the two teams stay antagonistic. Akechi becomes Phantom Gold, helping the Phantom Rangers while killing Naoto's grandfather. Adachi joins the Sleuths as Sleuth Silver, and kills Haru's father in the name of justice.

Eventually the two teams join forces, defeat the evil guys, and save the world, deciding to work together to bring about a better tomorrow. Souji gets with Naoto, Ren gets with either Haru or Makoto, Yosuke gets with Chie, probably, and everyone lives happily ever after.

That's how I would have written it. Don't know what I would have done with the giant robots...

Anyways, there's my longest author's note ever, probably.

But there you go. The idea that never was. Happy Power Rangers Day!


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